Recruiting no fun for those on fringe

By Lorne Chan :
January 28, 2013
: Updated: May 1, 2013 11:02am

On national signing day last year, Reagan’s Austin Hays (rear) couldn’t have imagined he would be celebrating a TD in the fall with fellow Oklahoma State receiver Isaiah Anderson. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Roosevelt defender Stephen Vaneau stalks Reagan receiver Austin Hays then chops the ball out of his hands causing a turnover in favor of the Riders as Roosevelt plays Reagan at Heroes Stadium on Nov. 6, 2010. Tom Reel/Staff

Photo By TOM REEL/Express-News

SPORTS Reagan receiver Austin Hays pulls in a touchdown pass in the first half as Reagan plays New Braunfels at Farris Stadium in the first round of playoff action on November 12, 2011. Tom Reel/Staff

Photo By TOM REEL/Express-News

SPORTS Rattler receiver Austin Hays brings the ball in for a long touchdown reception in the third quarter as Reagan plays New Braunfels at Farris Stadium in the first round of playoff action on November 12, 2011. Tom Reel/Staff

Photo By MARVIN PFEIFFER/Express-News

Reagan wide receiver Austin Hays (right) tries to break free from a tackle during the Rattlers' game with Johnson at Heroes Stadium on Oct. 28, 2011. MARVIN PFEIFFER/mpfeiffer@express-news.net

Photo By Kin Man Hui/Express-News

Reagan's Austin Hays (05) makes a catch over Madison's Latrell Sledge (22) in the first half of football at Comalander Stadium on Friday, Oct. 21, 2011. Hays scored two touchdowns for Reagan. Kin Man Hui/kmhui@express-news.net

Photo By Kin Man Hui/Express-News

Reagan's Austin Hays (05) celebrates his second touchdown of the first half with teammate Matt McCarthy (52) against Madison at Comalander Stadium on Friday, Oct. 21, 2011. Kin Man Hui/kmhui@express-news.net

Photo By Delcia Lopez/Express-News

MCALLEN,Tx,.NOV.26, 2011-San Antonio Reagan's Austin Hays misses a catch as McAllen Memorial defender Raul Jimenez defends on the play in the first quarter of play Saturday Nov.26,2011 at McAllen Veterans Memorial Stadium. SPECIAL TO THE EXPRESS NEWS . Photo by Delcia Lopez

FOR SPORTS - Reagan's Austin Hays heads to the end zone for a touchdown around O'Connor's Willy Mudge during first half action of their Class 5A Division II playoff game Saturday Nov. 19, 2011 at Heroes Stadium.

Photo By JOHN ALBRIGHT/Express-News

Reagan's Austin Hays pitches during a 26-5A varsity baseball game between the Johnson Jaguars and the Reagan Rattlers on April 20, 2012 a the NEISD Blossom Baseball Field in San Antonio Texas. John Albright / Special to the Express-News.

Photo By KIN MAN HUI/Express-News

Reagan's Austin Hays (05) hauls in a pass and runs for a 67-yard touchdown against Madison's Troy Lara (04) in the first half at Heroes Stadium on Friday, Nov. 6, 2009. Kin Man Hui/kmhui@express-news.net

SPORTS Reagan wide receiver Austin Hays battles two Unicorn tacklers led by Brett Rychel (27) to score a touchdown in the first quarter as New Braunfels plays Reagan at New Braunfels High School Stadium on Friday, October 16, 2009.

Photo By EDWARD A. ORNELAS/Express-News

Reagan's Austin Hays (left) heads up field around Churchill's Greg Krauss for a touchdown during first half action Friday Sept. 18, 2009 at Comalander Stadium.

A year later, Austin Hays still has mixed emotions about the recruiting process.

He's coming off a freshman year at Oklahoma State in which he started nine games and caught 29 passes.

But on national signing day last year, Hays sat in the crowd in Reagan High School's auditorium while his friends signed their letters of intent.

He didn't have a scholarship offer at that time and thought his football career was over.

Hays already has proven himself as a Big 12 starter, even though it wasn't until his third-period accounting class on signing day that the Cowboys called.

He was a player caught in the middle, just like thousands of other high school athletes this year, with the Feb. 6 signing day approaching: too good to give up on a college dream, but without the size and 40-yard dash time to get a coveted four- or-five star rating from a recruiting website.

Technology has changed recruiting, creating a giant divide between the top tier of football players and everyone else.

It's made life easy for the athletes with star ratings, who can get scholarship offers sight unseen. Any coach can track their stats, offers and list of top schools.

One area wide receiver, Madison's Dannon Cavil, switched his commitment twice before picking Oklahoma last week.

For the rest, they're uploading a highlight video to YouTube and hoping the right coach takes notice.

“I know I'm really fortunate,” Hays said. “Recruiting's great these days for the top-level guys, but it's a lot harder for guys who are on the edge to get noticed. I got a scholarship, but a lot of guys who deserved one didn't.”

Hays is listed as a two-star recruit according to Rivals.com, which is a joke to his father, Russell.

He had no stars next to his name until a few minutes after OSU called.

“Coaches have access to so much that I think it's easy to get caught up in measurables,” Reagan coach David Wetzel said. “Guys used to have to go to high school games and see who was producing.”

Wetzel made all of the calls he could. Hays sent his video to every address he had. And he spent the summer before his senior season traveling to different camps to gain notice.

The camps may have bothered Russell the most. His son would run a few routes and head home.

“If schools really needed the money from our registration fees that badly,” Russell said, “we would have just given them $40 and saved the trip.”

Hays visited OSU the weekend before signing day. Coaches told him they didn't have a scholarship, but he was the next guy they wanted. Without that offer, Hays decided he was going to play college baseball, likely at Texas State.

Hays may owe his football career to Chance Allen, a receiver who signed with Oregon after he had committed to OSU.

The Cowboys had a scholarship, and Hays signed as soon as they could send him the paperwork.

It's worked out for Hays. But players such as former Reagan teammate Tanner Schorp, a two-time All-Area defensive lineman, are still waiting for that first offer.

Hays has told Schorp that he can't explain why he was one of the lucky ones to get a last-minute offer, but it paid off to remain patient through such a frustrating process. If Schorp winds up at a Division II school, like many of those still waiting, Hays told him to make the best of it.